Autumn Getaway (Seasons of Love) (14 page)

“True,” Kathryn said. “He definitely gets a gold star.”

“Absolutely,” Lydia agreed. “I’ve got my fingers crossed for them.”

“Well, hey,” Donna said. She leaned in again and lowered her voice, not knowing who could be around them to hear her words. “As long as Ryan doesn’t beat the crap out of her like Nick did, then he’s a king. He’s got it easy, really: as long as he never raises a hand to her, he’s golden. Everything else just kind of seems unimportant in comparison, don’t you think?”

“Amen to that,” Lydia muttered. Kathryn nodded somberly in agreement.

The waiter came back holding a tray with three mimosas on it. He placed one in front of each woman.

“We didn’t order these,” Donna said, looking up at the waiter in confusion.

“They’re compliments of the bride,” he smiled at them. “She asked me to tell you she wishes she could join you, but can’t, and now is here in spirit.”

“Awww,” Lydia cooed. “That is so sweet!”

“Are her ears burning?” Donna wondered, laughing. “Talk about timing!”

“A toast, then,” Kathryn said, and raised her glass. “To Melanie. And to us all being together again, at long last.”

“I’ll drink to that,” Donna said.

“Me too.” Lydia smiled, and they all clinked glasses.

“Mmm, yummy,” Kathryn said after her sip.

“We can’t get wasted now, it’s too early,” Donna said, licking her lips, “but boy, I could throw back a few of these with no problem.”

Lydia laughed. “You always had the highest tolerance.”

“Yup, even before I got fat,” Donna said. She pointed at Kathryn. “You were always the lightweight. That’s the one drawback to being so skinny, I guess.”

Kathryn just shook her head and laughed. “Ah, Donna. You haven’t changed. Thank God.”

“If by that you mean I still have a big mouth, then yes, I haven't changed.” Donna grinned. “And I have even less tolerance for crap now than I used to. How scary is that?”

“Pretty scary.” Lydia smirked.

“I mean it,” Donna said. “When I hit thirty-five, after I had Casey, it all started to be like… you know what? Life’s too short for drama, and bullshit, and I just have no patience for it. I don’t have the energy for that crap.”

“Huh. Then you don’t want to be anywhere near my life right now,” Lydia quipped, taking a long sip of her drink.

Kathryn winced softly.

“Lyddie. I don’t mean
you
,” Donna said, reaching over to give her friend’s hand a quick squeeze. “You know that. Come on, fill us in on the latest. Andy’s with Matt this weekend?”

“Mm hmm.” Lydia nodded, swallowing more of the sweet, fizzy liquid before setting her glass down. “I dropped him off yesterday morning early, so I could get here by eleven. Melanie had scheduled massages for us.”

“Omigod, I’m so jealous!” Kathryn said.

“They have a spa here?” Donna asked.

“You bet,” Lydia nodded. “You two should go get massages either this afternoon, or tomorrow morning before you go home. It was wonderful.”

“I might do that,” Donna nodded. “Tomorrow morning is the brunch, but maybe I can schedule one in for right after, before I head home…” She narrowed her eyes at Lydia. “Alright, go on, you’re not off the hook. You were saying? Andy?”

Lydia frowned. “It’s the first time I’ve been away from Andy for more than a night since he was born.”

“He’s a strong little guy, he can handle it,” Donna assured her friend. “And so can you.”

“I’m sure he misses you,” Kathryn added, “but it’s good for him to have this time with Matt. He has to get used to it, that this is the way it’s going to be from now on, you know?” She gave Lydia a kind smile of support.

“How far away does Matt live from you now?” Donna asked. “Close enough, right?”

“Not far at all,” Lydia said. “Less than twenty minutes away. He moved down to Long Beach, got an apartment by the water, near a park so Andy could play… it’s nice. A decent building, one of the newer ones. Matt knows Andy’s still little enough that he needs to be shadowed at all times, and I think he’ll do it. If for no other reason than just to prove to me he’s a good father, since he thinks I don’t think he is.”

“
Is
he a good father?” Kathryn asked.

Lydia let out a short, caustic laugh. “That’s the ironic part. I actually think he’s a decent father most of the time. He doesn’t do most things the way I’d like them to be done where Andy’s concerned, and we rarely agree on anything concerning him. But now that he only sees him on Wednesday evenings and Sundays, he’s changed his mind on a lot of things regarding Andy, and he's really trying harder. He tries to be more patient. Too bad he couldn’t do some of that when we were married. Things could have been easier.”

“But even if he had, you weren’t happy regardless,” Donna pointed out.

“No, I wasn’t. Not for a long time. We were like roommates, not spouses. And angry roommates, at that,” Lydia added. She sighed. “He is a decent father, and there’s plenty of room for improvement there. But he was a lousy husband, and there were no signs of anything ever changing on that front. It just slowly kept getting worse. I was mad at him, he was mad at me… and I didn’t want it to affect Andy any more than it probably already had. So I asked him to leave, told him I wanted the divorce—you know the whole story there, I won't go into repeats.”

“Yeah.” Kathryn nodded sadly.

“By the way, I guess I should make a toast as I tell you: the divorce is official. I signed the final papers on Tuesday.”

“Holy crap!” Donna cried. “We’ve been sitting here for how long, and you’re only getting around to telling us that
now
? I could slap you!”

“Sorry,” Lydia chuckled.

“It feels weird to say ‘congratulations’ to something like this,” Kathryn said, “but, well, congratulations. I guess?”

“Thank you,” Lydia replied. “And yes, they are in order. I’m very relieved that it’s all finally done,
really
done.”

“You know, I always meant to ask you…” Donna said with uncharacteristic softness. “Well… did he ever fight for it? It didn’t sound like it. I mean, you were married for nine years, you were together for, what, eleven or so? Didn't he try to save the marriage at all?”

“No,” Lydia said quietly. “Nope. He was happy to let it go. To let
me
go. Hey, he never fought for me when things were good, why would he fight for me once I told him I couldn’t stand him anymore and wanted him to leave? He was furious, but once he left, he did it without a backwards look.”

“He just left?” Donna asked, her brows creasing. “Gave up? Just like that?”

“Yup. And even though that hurt, it just reinforced for me that I’d done the right thing in asking him to go. Because he wouldn’t ever have left on his own. He would have just stayed around to be with Andy… God, it wasn’t good. For any of us.”

“You did the right thing,” Kathryn said, patting Lydia’s shoulder. “It’s hard, and it’s painful, but in the long run, you’ll be so much happier. You know that, right?”

“I know,” Lydia said. “I do know that. I'm already happier—I don’t miss him at all. I really don't. That may sound callous to some, but I'm glad to not be around him anymore, feeling that always simmering anger and resentment, bubbling right below the surface. Since we separated, that's dissolved, a lot. I mean, I feel awful for Andy that his family imploded, and I’m a little overwhelmed sometimes with the whole single mom thing…” Her chin lifted with resolution. “But I don’t miss him. I’ve been better since we’ve been apart. And I’m really very lucky. I have family and friends around me, a lot of support, a lot of help. I’ll be okay.”

“That’s right, you will,” Donna said. “And you might not be ready to hear this now, but one day you might even meet someone new, someone wonderful to share your life with, share your son with, someone who’s worthy of you both.” Her grin turned wicked. “And until then, you can make up for the lost time and have sex with anyone you goddamn please. Lots of sex!”

“Shhh!” Kathryn hushed, looking around nervously.

Lydia laughed. It was just like old times: Donna was still saying outrageous things and Kathryn was still blushing at them. Classic. “You and Melanie are on the same page, it seems. She told me that hooking up is precisely what I need to do. Me, I disagree. But it’s nice to know that someone’s interested in my sex life. Thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” Donna replied. “I think Mel’s right. Could there be any hookup candidates around here? A weekend away from home, in this beautiful place with lots of beds?”

Lydia blushed and squashed her lips together.

“Oh, you are so busted!” Donna cried, her eyes widening. “I was just kidding! Did you meet someone here?”

“Spill it!” Kathryn yelped, squeezing Lydia’s forearm.

“Your lunches, ladies,” said the waiter, who was suddenly standing by them with a rolling table.

“Saved by the bell,” Lydia muttered.

“The hell you are,” Donna spat with a laugh.

The waiter placed a huge Caesar salad with shrimp in front of Kathryn, a Cobb salad in front of Donna, and a Greek salad in front of Lydia. He placed a basket filled with assorted warm rolls in the center, and topped off their water glasses. “Anything else, ladies?”

“No, thank you, we’re fine.” Lydia smiled up at him.

He nodded and walked away.

“I thought he’d never leave,” Donna growled. She picked up her fork and pointed it menacingly at Lydia. “Spill. Now.”

“Either that, or we’re going to go find Melanie, and you know she’ll gladly tell us everything,” Kathryn said, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Lydia averted her gaze to her salad and pushed the leaves of lettuce around aimlessly. “It’s nothing, really. You’re making a lot out of nothing.”

“You blushed,” Donna said simply, as if that alone was all the explanation needed. “You never had a poker face. So there’s
something
there. Something is afoot.”

“Strange things are afoot at the Circle K,” Lydia mumbled under her breath.

Donna narrowed her eyes at her friend.

“Come
on
!” Kathryn pushed. “Just tell us!”

Lydia laughed. “This is surreal, you two doing this. All we need is Mel here, and if I closed my eyes, I’d think we were back in the dorms.”

Kathryn and Donna both chuckled, nodding in agreement.

“Well,” Lydia said, her voice lowering, “there’s this guy here… his name is Sam.”

“Go on,” Donna urged, spearing a piece of hard-boiled egg from her plate.

“Sam Forrester. His older brother, Alec, is Ryan’s best friend, and his best man at the wedding,” Lydia began. She briefly explained the connection between the Selby and Forrester families as Melanie had told it to her, and why Sam would be invited to the wedding.

“How old is he?” Kathryn asked.

“Just turned thirty-five last week,” Lydia reported.

“Mmm, a younger man,” Kathryn purred with a smile.

“Not younger enough to really make a difference,” Donna said. “Pffft! Two years, at this stage of the game, is nothing. So did Melanie and Ryan set you guys up or something?”

“No, no, nothing like that,” Lydia said, picking out a dark purple Kalamata olive from her salad with her fork and popping it into her mouth. “I met him in the lobby right when I first arrived, actually. My suitcase fell over, he was there, and he picked it up for me before I could do it. Quick, sweet, no big deal.”

“I like it already,” Donna enthused. “Go on.”

“Then I was reading out in the garden yesterday afternoon, and he showed up. He was looking for a place to read in the sun too, so we sat together and read for a while, chatted a little bit… he was nice,” Lydia said, smiling beyond her control.

“Oh, look at her,” Donna said dramatically. “You like this guy!”

“What does he do for a living?” Kathryn asked.

“Graphic designer. Web design.”

“Good job.” Donna nodded in approval. “What does he look like? Decent looking?”

Lydia snorted. “A little more than decent. He’s kind of gorgeous, actually. He has this incredible smile… it sounds so damn silly, but when he smiles, it just
does
something to me. Ridiculous, right?”

“I looove this story!” Donna pronounced. “So? Did you hook up with him last night, is that what happened?”

“No!” Lydia said, releasing a surprised laugh. “What kind of girl do you think I am?” she joked.

“The kind who needs to get laid, just like anyone else,” Donna said bluntly.

“Oh my God,” Kathryn laughed, hiding her face in her hands.

“You love that you still have that effect on her,” Lydia said to Donna with a grin. “Look what you’ve done to our delicate flower.”

“It is fun,” Donna crowed. “So? Did anything happen?”

“There was a dinner last night for the out-of-town guests,” Lydia said, and gave a quick rundown of the previous night’s events, ending with how he’d left her at her hotel door.

“No kiss good night?” Donna spat. “What kind of shit is that?”

“Stop it!” Kathryn demanded. “He’s obviously a gentleman.”

“Or maybe he saw the big flashing ‘Loser’ sign on my forehead,” Lydia remarked wryly. “Just got divorced, with a kid? Most guys would be running for the exits. Plus, by the end of the night, I was a little overemotional, thanks to being slightly drunk—I got a little teary at one point during the talk—charming, I’m sure. Maybe he saw all of that and thought better of hitting on me after all. Seriously—whether a guy wants to just get laid or not, who’d want to get near this deal?”

“Someone who can recognize greatness when they see it, that’s who,” Donna said emphatically, her eyes pinning Lydia. “Stop putting yourself down. You’re fantastic. You're a catch. He’d be lucky to get near you.”

“My people just pay you to say that,” Lydia mumbled with a slight grin.

“Hey! I
am
your people,” Donna grinned back.

“Me too,” Kathryn piped up. “And I agree with every word. Every last one.”

Lydia’s grin turned shy, appreciative. “Thanks, guys.”

“Any time.” Donna drank some of her water before saying, “Okay—enough speculating on what Sam might or might not want.” She stared purposefully at Lydia. “What do
you
want?”